AT&T Adds LTE-Equipped Galaxy Note 8.0

Samsung said that AT&T will soon offer an LTE-equipped version of its Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet. Also, sales of the Galaxy S4 are just fine, thank you.

Samsung Galaxy S 4: 11 Clever Tricks

(click image for slideshow)

AT&T has agreed to sell the Samsung Galaxy Note 8.0 tablet, the companies announced this week. Unlike the version of the Note 8.0 that went on sale earlier this year, this new variant will come with support for AT&T's LTE 4G network.

The Note 8.0 is a midsized tablet that is equal parks work machine and play device. It fits right in with Samsung's line of Galaxy smartphones in terms of design and basic functionality. Samsung used glossy plastics to construct the Note 8.0, which is in keeping with its current crop of phones and tablets.

The Note 8.0 includes an 8-inch TFT LCD display with 1280 x 800 pixels. That gives it a pixel density of 189 ppi, which means it is not the sharpest display ever. The tablet is powered by a quad-core ARM Cortex A9 processor with each core rated at 1.6 GHz. The processors are paired with 2 GB of RAM and up to 32 GB of onboard storage. The tablet has two cameras: a 5-megapixel main camera and a 1.3-megapixel user-facing camera. The main camera doubles as an HD videocamera for Google Hangouts.

Looking past the hardware, the Note 8 includes a wide range of Samsung's software and applications that take advantage of the S Pen, or stylus. Awesome Note, for example, provides power users with a to-do list on steroids. The Note 8 also supports true multitasking, which allows users to run two apps on the screen at the same time. Users can employ the S Pen to pull up secondary menus and use Air View to see previews of links and other content. The Note 8 also boasts an IR blaster and Samsung's WatchOn software. Together, these let people control their television sets and search for content worth viewing.

AT&T said the device will go on sale in the coming weeks, but it didn't disclose pricing. If you're wondering where you'll be able to use the Note 8.0, AT&T's LTE network covers more than 200 million Americans in more than 270 markets. AT&T's HSPA+ network reaches 97% of all Americans, which means even when LTE isn't around, you'll still have speedy Internet access.

In other Samsung news, the company has responded to reports about slowing sales of the Galaxy S4 smartphone. Though it stormed out of the gate with shipments of 10 million phones during the first 30 days it was available for sale, analysts the world over believe Samsung can't maintain that pace.

"I can say sales of the Galaxy S4 smartphone are fine. It's been selling well," said Samsung CEO Shin Jong-kyun at an investor meeting.

JPMorgan said in a note to investors that it initially expected Samsung to sell 100 million GS4s by this time next year. Based its own sales data, JPMorgan downgraded that estimate by 40% to just 60 million units.

"The report was based on its own analysis," said Shin. "Probably, the bank may have corrected its previous bullish estimate about the S4 sales."

Among 688 respondents, 46% have deployed mobile apps, with an additional 24% planning to in the next year. Soon all apps will look like mobile apps – and it's past time for those with no plans to get cracking.